there's no going back. this is the new normal.

365 Days of Botany

I didn't post a 365 post yesterday. I made it 72 days in, a fifth of the way, and I'm taking a break - maybe permanently.

I feel like the last month I've just been going through the motions. There's other things I want to do, and I feel like my guilt over wanting to quit this project - and let's face it, half-assing it lately - is weighing too heavily on me. I don't want to start feeling negative about art just when I started to get into the swing of things.

Maybe I got too ambitious deciding to take this on, but I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I just don't want to force myself to do things that I should be enjoying but am not anymore, so I'm not going to.

I think this is a purple hibiscus bush. It looks tropical, I don't know what it's doing in Vancouver!

Today, I had the chance to meet up with a very old friend for coffee. It's funny how when you see someone you haven't seen in a really long time, who at one time in your life you were really tight with, it can be a tiny bit awkward initially... but you find yourself talking like no time has passed at all. They're almost like a stranger and almost like a good friend at the same time. You tell them things you wouldn't tell a stranger, because you believe that at the core, they're still that same person from way back when, who you trusted. They remind you a little bit of who you were before everything in your life got so complex, before you grew up.

Today is a very special day. It's the 3 year anniversary (or as I like to call it "first-date-iversary") of Bruno and my first date in Copenhagen. This first date almost didn't happen because in typical Ariane-style I got some kind of stomach bug the second day of the conference and missed the last two days, but Bruno dragged himself away from the party for the last night of the conference to come hang out with me for a bit at the apartment I was staying at (he was leaving town the next morning).

Aren't succulent flowers just amazing? They always seem so tropical that I can't believe they deign to bloom in the great white north.

We woke up to.... drum roll... more raccoon poop today! Wheee. This led to planting all the plants I picked up on sale last week to try and cover all the bare rocks that were seemingly so attractive. Bruno's mom gave us an extra (fantastic!) tip, to put BBQ skewers in the ground too, so they get poked if they try and squat! Imagine a bamboo skewer to the butt, what a surprise that'd be!

One of the plants I've fallen in love with this summer is a variety of sedum I kept seeing around the neighbourhood. Happy to report I've finally snagged one to plant in our garden, from the end of season plant sale at the hardware store!